Spark Plugs/Wire & Intakes

[TrCeaAstTer]

Hey Guys,
I finally caught the fever to fix up the old P5 and so far im doin pretty well but when it comes to spark plugs and wires and intakes even exausts im damn confused. first off i just bought some ngk iridium ix plugs but as far as which wire kit goes, who do i get it from? the guy from autozone said bosh doesn't make one for the p5 and i'd like to replace the wires. Secondly im being torn between a cold air intake and a short ram w/ a heat shield. What are your opinions. I'd love the cai but im afraid of drowning the engine. I've been lookin on e-bay at the ones that say protege 5 cold air intake seeing that i don't wanna spend a fortune. so gimmie ur thoughts on the above and it'll be much appreciated!

 

[novAKs47]

Take some time to search around in these forums. You'll find LOTS of useful info. As for the intake, I'd go with a CAI. The short rams boost the throttle response a little bit, but that's about it. And the heatshild filters don't seem to impact much, other than looks. True CAI's will give you some actual HP gains. For wires, you can go to www.protegegarage.com. Again, search around on here, and you'll find all the answers your lookin' for. (thumb)

Oh yeah, and some time this week I'll be selling my Ractive intake, with the original filter and a heatshield filter. Keep an eye out for me in the for sale section.

 

[TrCeaAstTer]

Thanks

Thanks man but are those wires on the site a bit pricy? I was lookin into magnecor or Sparkco wires but it looks like they only replace 2 of the wires... Why? and is replacing all for a big deal? Plus I'm trying to do the plugs/wires and intake at the same time, im trying to keep it in the lower price range

 

[scotthidley]

I'd really dig into the plug wire searching before picking up a set of those. You'd be better off upgrading the exhaust along with the intake instead. You might want springs instead of the plug wires as well. Figure out what you want from the car, and go from there. Keep in mind, you get what you pay for, don't expect the cheapest part to perform the best.

 

[TrCeaAstTer]

Do you have a prefered brand? Because i could've sworn that u should replace all four but it strikes me as odd that i buy 4 spark plugs from sparkco and they only sell a 2 wire kit. Basically right now i want a bit more reaction in the performance. I just got some new enkies and 2 12" audiobahn in a fiberglass box w/ a 1400W so im lookin to get some power to even the haul. I'm ordering the intake soon and the exaust i'll have to save up for so i guess right now i need to solve this spark issue since i bought some ngk iridium ix plugs i need some wires that'll do em justice

 

[scotthidley]

Do you have a prefered brand? Because i could've sworn that u should replace all four but it strikes me as odd that i buy 4 spark plugs from sparkco and they only sell a 2 wire kit. Basically right now i want a bit more reaction in the performance. I just got some new enkies and 2 12" audiobahn in a fiberglass box w/ a 1400W so im lookin to get some power to even the haul. I'm ordering the intake soon and the exaust i'll have to save up for so i guess right now i need to solve this spark issue since i bought some ngk iridium ix plugs i need some wires that'll do em justice

I haven't bothered with that stuff for the P5. I have Magnecor's on my Talon, which is making ~ twice the factory power right now. I still don't think they're making much of a difference. I just run regular NGK's in that as well. I've tried the platinum's and Bosch +4's in other cars, and honestly couldn't feel a difference. I just don't think those are worth the cost for you at this point. You'd probably help the ignition more by getting a higher output alt (local shops can rewind them to put out more amperage). I just did that for the Talon, and it made a good improvement. If you monitor your battery voltage (you'd have to set this up), you'd see if this is worth while as well. If your battery is steadily over 12 Volts, you don't need to bother with it. But if it gets in the 11's, you should consider that (which would be most likely with all accessories on including lights).

 

[redfyre]

Let me tell you there is barely any difference between a SRI and a CAI. I've had both in my car. You will notice about the same gains (maybe 2-4hp at most) but the CAI tends you give you a little better low end torque. With both systems you won't actually see or feel anything until the higher rpms (3000+).

The SRI is louder but still sounds good. The CAI sounds like the SRI only a little quieter.

I live in Canada and I've had no problems with my SRI in the winter. I'm planning on leaving the CAI I have in now over the winter and don't forsee any problems with it. We've had lots of rain and some flooding here over the summer and I drove through it all with no problems.

As for plugs and wires, you won't notice any difference if you replace those. I suppose in theory you will get better fuel economy and throttle response and hp gains, but all that is so minute you won't feel it.